Almost 500 people packed into the Lampton Park Conference Centre at Hounslow Civic Centre.

The four-and-a-half hours of presentations, questioning and debates essentially boiled down to two key points:

* did the school prove this application met the 'very special circumstances' required to build on metropolitan open land, which is afforded the same protection as the green belt?

* had the school done enough to address concerns about extra traffic on already congested roads in the area?

On the first question, the school's supporters said a 'robust' assessment had shown this was the only site in the borough which was both suitable and available.

But KOG members questioned how thorough the search had been. They said the school had failed to follow up enquiries with the owners of some potential plots, and had also ruled out having primary and secondary schools at different sites or adding a fourth storey to reduce the land required.

How Nishkam School West London would look

As for traffic, the school said its travel plan would reduce the number of pupils coming by car by, among other measures, providing a school bus and at least one 'park-and-stride' point for parents to drop off their children away from the gates.

It even said it was prepared to 'name and shame' those parents not travelling responsibly if all other measures failed.

But KOG's representatives argued the school would result in an estimated 2,640 extra car journeys a day along roads where 2.5 mile tailbacks were not uncommon.

They many many pupils would be coming from the other end of the borough or beyond the borders, but the school said 85% of existing pupils are from Hounslow.

"This is a natural way... to give something back to the borough"

Liz Fitzgerald, of the school's planning consultants Vincent and Gorbing, warned any delay in building the new school could exacerbate the "critical shortage" of school places in the borough.

Nishkam School Trust executive principal Terry Green told councillors: "I urge you not to miss out on the opportunity to have what will be an outstanding school in the heart of our community. We won't let you down."

Dr Brin Mahon, the trust's chair of governors, said: "We (the Sikh community) feel this is a very natural way for us to progress and give something back to the borough. We're not talking just for the Sikh community, we're talking genuinely for anybody who wants to come to this school."

Campaigner George Andraos presents a petition to MP Ruth Cadbury

Speaking after the meeting, George Andraos, of KOG, said he was concerned the decision would set a precedent for building on green land across the borough.

"This was a political decision, not a planning one, and we've known this from the start. The desire for new schools and homes overrides the desire to protect our green spaces," he said.

"Once that piece of metropolitan open land goes, more and more will be built upon. This will create a precedent."

Should the new school building be approved by the Greater London Authority, it is scheduled to open in September 2017.